The Coast Road was re-opened this morning after a week and drivers have commented that there was an easy flow of traffic.
The seven-km stretch that links the north to the central part of the island has been re-done in a project that started four years ago under a Nationalist administration, and continued after the change of government.
The complete closure of the road since Monday led to serious traffic congestions as alternate routes needed to be found by hundreds of drivers, with the main problems being in St Paul’s Bay.
Traffic was at a standstill during peak hours on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday but, as from this morning, the re-opening of the Coast Road has made things easier.
There is still traffic congestion on our roads in the usual junctions and roundabouts, but nothing similar to what drivers experienced in the past days.
The work has not been completed however. Drivers on their way from St Paul's Bay to St Julian's are being diverted at Bahar ic-Caghaq and need to use the back roads close to the White Rock to proceed on their journey.
Those going in the opposite direction are being diverted through Maghtab to proceed towards St Paul's Bay as the tarmacking of the roads continue this morning.
Drivers are however warned that road signage is still missing and that they should proceed with caution.
One driver said that driving from Bahar ic-Caghaq to Maghtab diversion he experienced two near misses of head-on collision. People driving in the opposite direction have no idea that from the diversion at Bahar ic-Caghaq towards St Andrews the stretch is two-way. This could be dangerous and drivers are warned to exercise caution.
Traffic issues seem to be elswhere this morning, as there is a huge congestion in the Msida area, including the Regional Road.
Drivers are reporting being stuck for more than an hour in Msida as they try to make their way to Valletta. This has also affected the Regional Road as drivers wanting to travel from the south to the central and northern parts of the island are also stuck in heavy traffic.
Heavy traffic was also reported in Marsa as motorists were stuck in a long traffic jam stretching from the Addolorata junction all the way to Kappara. People who called this newsroom said it took them almost an hour and a half to get from Paola to St Julians. Two ambulances also had a tough time navigating through the traffic.
Photos/video Jonathan Borg, Photos Malta Traffic updates